Friday, June 15, 2012

the crane wife

yesterday i stopped by to ask my institute teacher a question about how to apply what we'd talked about in class the night before. we ended up having a really great discussion and i'll probably keep visiting him every couple of weeks, just for good conversation.

he told me a story about elder holland and his son matt that really helped me understand some things. the more you think about it, the bigger it becomes.

Returning from an exploring trip on backcountry roads, he and his father came to an unexpected fork and could not remember which road to take. It was late in the day, and they knew darkness would be enveloping them in unfamiliar territory. Seizing a teaching moment, Jeffrey Holland asked his son to pray for direction. Afterward, he asked his son what he felt, and Matt replied that he felt strongly they should go to the left. Replying that he had felt the same way, his father turned the truck to the left. Ten minutes later, they came to a dead end and returned to take the other route.

Matt thought for a time and then asked his father why they would get that kind of answer to a prayer. His father replied that with the sun going down, that was undoubtedly the quickest way for the Lord to give them information—in this case, which one was the wrong road. Now, though the other road might not be familiar and could be difficult in places, they could proceed confidently, knowing it was the right one, even in the dark.

i presume this is from the "teachings of the living prophets" class manual but don't have a reference for this other than this is where i got it.

2 comments:

that is very interesting... very very interesting. that heavenly father doesnt always give us the straight up answer, but instead gives us a way to learn on our own. because when we learn something on our own, rather than simply being given, we remember it more. it is more special.